Flexible fibrous material.



G. LANZENDORPER. FLEXIBLE muons MATERIAL' APPLICATION FILED JUNE 3,1908.

923,978. Pa-tented June 8, 1909.

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THE NORRIS PETERS CO lVASHINOTON, r :4

UNITED STATES PATENT ormon.

GEORGE LAN ZEN DORFER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO KOPS BROS,OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A FIRM.

FLEXIBLE FIBROUS MATERIAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 8, 1909.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE LANZENDORFER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Boston, in the county of Sufiolk, Commonwealth ofMassachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Flexible FibrousMaterial, of which the following description, in connection with theaccompanying drawings, is a specification.

This invention relates to flexible fibrous material such, for instance,as is used in making dress stays and the like.

The invention consists in an improved article of manufacture.

Among other objects the invention is designed to supply a tough, readilyflexible though elastic material which shall be easy and economical tomake.

The character of the invention may be best understood by reference to aspecific method, and the product thereof embodying the invention, whichare described herein for purposes of illustration.

It is to be understood of course that the invention is not essentiallylimited to the specific described details of the illustrative article ofmanufacture.

In the accompanying drawings,Figure 1 comprises a transverse section ofa strip of the preferred raw material; Fig. 2, a transverse section oflike material, treated by the illustrative method; and Fig. 3, aperspective of a product of the preferred method.

A raw material suitable to the practice of the invention consists of apiece of fibrous vegetable material, in substantially its naturalcondition, as exemplified in reed, bamboo and the like. Such material,while possessing constituent qualities of utility in making flexiblefibrous material, is naturally too inelastic and brittle to suitcommercial purposes.

A preferred article embodying the invention may be made by suitablymodifying raw material such as suggested, while retaining all thedesirable qualities of its fibers.

The preferred article may be made by subjecting vegetable'fibers to aseparating treatment service to remove therefrom, more or lesscompletely, non-fibrous material which may tend to modify the qualitiesof the fiber and to fillthe interstices of the material. Such aseparating treatment may consist in subjecting the fibers to an alkalinebathfor instance, to a bath of caustic soda solution, which is thepreferred .agency for this purpose. In this manner a product may beobtained wherein the fibers are in a more or less pure condition, and insuch raw material as has been described the interstices or cellsintervening between the fibers may be substantially vacant.

In reed, bamboo and the like the cells between the ligneous fibers maybe partially or completely filled with non-fibrous substances, asalbumen and the like as indicated by dots in Fig. 1; and the describedseparating treatment may have the effect of separating out at least partof these substances.

If it is to be desired that the finished product have some color otherthan the natural color of the fibrous material, the same may be dyed atany suitable stage in the method, and preferably after the mate'- rialhas been subjected to the separating treatment. Thereupon it may bewashed to remove surplus dyestufi' and mordants.

The interstices between the fibers-as the cells in reed, bamboo or thelikeI prefer to fill with some substance serving to give elasticity tothe finished product; and an adhesive may suit this purpose, since itmakes the fibers cohere strongly and gives the material desired unity ofelastic structure. 'The filling material may be supplied to the fibersin any practicable manner, as by soaking the fibers therein or placingthe preferred raw material endwise in a bath of liquid filler, as glue,and permitting the latter to be drawn into the more or less vacantinterstices by capillary attraction.

hen the filling material has been suitably intermingled with the fibers,the mass (preferably partially dried) may be compacted by rolling,squeezin or in any other suitable manner, to solidi y the same into suchform as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The finished article (Fig. 3) produced by the above describedillustrative method possesses many advantages which will appear to.those skilled in the art. For instance, it comprises tenacious vegetablefibers, related substantially as in nature, the same having a fillingmaterial to give the mass elastic body and coherence,.and beingcompacted to solidify the mass and make it even more elastic.

As will appear to those skilled in the art, the invention is notessentially limited to the specific details hereinbefore set forth; orto the exact steps or sequence of operations above described to explainthe manufacture of an article embodying this invention.

Claim- 1. An article of manufacture consisting of a piece of naturalfibrous vegetable material having a part of its non-fibrous constituentsreplaced by glue, and the Whole substantially compacted transversely,the fibers of the piece having substantially natural longitudinalrelations and retaining tensile and flexing strength.

2. As an article of manufacture, an elastic dress stay or the likeconsisting of a strip of natural vegetable fibrous material having partof its nonfibrous constituents removed and its fibers treated withstiffening substance and substantially compacted transversely Whilepreserving the natural longitudinal relations between the fibers toretain tensile and flexing strength.

3. An article of manufacture consisting of a piece of natural vegetablefibrous material of the genus of reed, having part of its nonlibrousconstituents removed and a stiffening substance applied to the remainingfibers,

the Whole being substantially compacted transversely of the fibers, thelatter having substantially natural longitudinal relations.

4. As an article of manufacture, an elastic dress stay or the like,consisting of a strip of natural vegetable fibrous material of the genusof reed, having part of its non-fibrous constituents removed and astiffening substance applied to the remaining fibers, the whole beingsubstantially compacted transversely of the fibers, the latter havingub-

